Joh for PM: Musical’s soundtrack released in time for Qld election
If you’re finding it a little difficult to get in the mood for the State Election than perhaps it’s time to take a trip down memory lane thanks to this incredible soundtrack from the musical about arguably Queensland’s most controversial politician ever.
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The spectre of Sir Joh haunts every Queensland election and while you vote this year you can remember the man dubbed the “hillbilly dictator” by singing along to the soundtrack of the musical JOH for P.M.
That hilarious and unlikely show premiered at Brisbane Powerhouse in 2017 as part of the Queensland Music Festival. It was a show that probably shouldn’t have worked but it did and it was hilarious - warm-hearted and satirical.
It starred Colin Lane of Lano and Woodley fame as former Queensland premier Sir Joh Bjelke Petersen and Barb Lowing as his wife Lady Flo, although on the cast recording Flo is played by Cienda McNamara, while Sandro Colarelli is Gough Whitlam (among other parts) and Paul Hodge is Joh’s media man Allen Callaghan.
Written by local playwright Stephen Carleton the stage show has a killer soundtrack with music and lyrics by Carleton and Hodge, who is in New York right now.
He tells us it was being released the day before the election so “people could make it the soundtrack of their election day”.
He said the Joh story was still strangely relevant.
“The musical’s finale, a song called Queenslanders, shows that Joh is the gift that keeps on giving with his progeny maintaining the brand of Queensland mavericks ... Pauline Hanson, Clive Palmer, Bob Katter and even Kevin Rudd.”
The soundtrack features that song and other classics such as Feed The Chooks and Don’t You Worry About That, in which Joh sings: “If you keep me here forever, Then you know just what, I’ll keep us growing stronger, I’ll take care of you, Don’t you worry about that.”
Whatever you think of Sir Joh’s legacy, our current Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk would probably agree with the sentiments in many of the songs.
In Going National Sir Joh sings ...“I’ll show them down in the South, I’ll punch them right in the mouth.”
Other songs include the White Shoe Shuffle and the potential smash hit Pumpkin Scone Diplomacy which contains a handy guide to Lady Flo’s famous pumpkin scone recipe.
The studio cast recording is being released to coincide with the election and features Colin Lane and a cast of Brisbane actors and musicians.
When it debuted at Brisbane Powerhouse some of the characters being lampooned on stage were in the audience, including former premier Mike Ahern who laughed his head off.
At the time Stephen Carleton said it was a great responsibility writing about such a divisive figure.
“When I started work on it I thought - where do I begin? “ Carleton said. “Joh was such an iconic figure and such a polarising one. There isn’t anyone who doesn’t have an opinion about him. The idea of a musical such as this seems strangely overdue.”
If there could be a Keating! The Musical why not one about the politician who made an art form of mangling the English language - and who was our leading mangler until Pauline Hanson came along.
The show was a co-production between Brisbane Powerhouse and Jute Theatre Company in Cairns.
Brisbane Powerhouse artistic director Kris Stewart, who also directed the musical, said it was a musical with a social conscience.
It’s satirical but it doesn’t gloss over some of the scandals of the Joh era and one of the biggest scandals was Joh’s Minister for Everything, Russ Hinze, who has a number in the show.
Hodge and friends are planning to reboot the show and restage it with new characters, including Malcolm Fraser and Bob Hawke.
In the meantime we have the soundtrack to keep us going thanks to support from a Creative Sparks Fund Grant, a partnership between the Queensland Government and Brisbane City Council to support locals arts and culture in Brisbane.
By goodness gracious me, we can’t wait to hear it.
It’s out today on Apple Music, Amazon, Spotify and other major music platforms.
More info: johforpm.com